


Take My Hand

by vronvron



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Demons, Assassins, Crime Lords, Demon!Seonghwa, Demon!Yunho, Human!Hongjoong, Human!Wooyoung, If You Squint - Freeform, M/M, Not Beta Read, Not Gonna Say Who, Organized Crime, Romance will happen later, Spies, Supernatural Elements, There will be violence, Will add tags as I go, and probably blood, demon!San, demon!yeosang, don't expect it to be super lovey dovey too soon, human!jongho, human!mingi, maybe smut later on, one of them has made a pact with a demon, one of them is a clueless human, there are other pairings, titles are difficult, who knows - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-29
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-02-26 19:11:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23912536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vronvron/pseuds/vronvron
Summary: The demons got sick and tired of running around in the shadows.So what did they do? Reveal themselves and take over the human world. Yup. That was decades, maybe even centuries ago now.For the most part, humanity has long since become accustomed to life living with demons. The transition honestly wasn't so terrible. That doesn't mean that there is no more crime or death.In the big cities, there is still plenty of that. The only difference is that majority of these mafia and crime lords are demons who don't have anything better to do, and they don't hide who they are either.
Relationships: Kim Hongjoong/Park Seonghwa
Comments: 16
Kudos: 71





	1. Club Crescent

Maybe Hongjoong should have researched a bit more about his workplace before he actually went for the job. There had barely been a proper interview and he was accepted way too quickly.

The job was a server job in Club Crescent. The price of rent was becoming higher in the area which Hongjoong lived in, and considering he was living with another person, his long time friend Mingi, he had to find a job that would pay him better. He had looked around for perhaps a couple weeks before he stumbled upon this job advertisement. He hadn't ever thought of working as a server in a club, but considering the pay, he decided that it would be fine. He kept telling himself that it was better anyway. Mingi would be studying and would need to sleep well, and so Hongjoong could take full shifts throughout the night as not to disturb the younger boy's rest.

It wasn't too difficult since he had worked as a server before, for a cafe and a restaurant. He had the experience so that helped, and even without doing any proper research, he could easily tell that this club was owned and run by demons. He just didn't know _who_ exactly the owner was.

Around about two weeks since he had begun the job, Hongjoong definitely felt a bit more comfortable with his new routine and his work environment. His coworkers seemed pretty nice as well, a mix of humans and a couple demons. He had only met the manager very briefly on his second night of work there, and ever since, the very handsome demon manager would be popping in and out of the club, always looking busy doing something.

Hongjoong made sure to just focus on his job and he was honestly glad that the club didn't require some sort of skimpy ridiculous outfit for their employees. They had uniforms thankfully, long sleeve white blouses with light grey vests and matching grey pants. Shoes had to be closed and black. He didn't mind it, though he had to admit that on the busier nights, it did get a tad warm in those clothes. He stayed professional though and made sure all patrons were happy and enjoying themselves. If a couple times a few inebriated patrons tried to lay their hands on him, he would gently pull away, smile and walk off, wishing them a good night.

It worked - mostly.

Sometimes he couldn't exactly just walk off, especially when it was a demon who grabbed a hold of him. Even if it was just the arm, their grip would literally be impossible to break free from. Those times, thankfully one of the other servers usually came over and managed to help Hongjoong out of the situation.

It was a busier night, and more people meant that it would be less likely to be able to receive any help from his coworkers. He knew he had to serve other tables, but he had been stuck at one table for what he guessed was at least twenty minutes by now. The demon had his hand around Hongjoong's bicep, pulling him closer as he slurred on about some nonsense. Hongjoong just stayed quiet and just smiled, really not knowing what to do since the last thing he wanted to was to provoke a customer.

Just as he was wracking his brain for some kind of escape, he felt a chill run down his spine and suddenly there was a very strong presence behind him.

"He needs to get back to work. Let go of him," a rather deep voice spoke by Hongjoong's ear. The human didn't turn his head though, just looked through his periphery. He saw part of the profile of a man's face, partially covered by sunglasses. The grip had yet to loosen, and the man behind Hongjoong lowered his sunglasses slightly, his eyes flashing a light grey. "Did you not hear me?" he asked, though it really wasn't a question. Hongjoong winced slightly and exhaled when the hand was finally removed. He turned to the demon to thank him for the help but those grey eyes glanced down at his arm before turning away. "Get Yeosang to look at that," he said. Hongjoong was sure that he shouldn't have been able to hear that over the loud music, but the man's deep voice cut through it despite him walking away already.

Left a little speechless, Hongjoong slowly walked back over to the bar, heading over towards the employees only area. He didn't actually know where the manager was, but he went to the employee's bathroom, taking off his vest and shirt, wincing slightly as he took off the blouse from his left arm. He winced just from seeing the redness of his bicep when he looked in the mirror and sighed. He nearly jumped several feet into the air when a figure began to materialise behind him in a flurry of dark feathers, but he relaxed when he saw the familiar face of his manager, Yeosang.

The manager sighed and shook his head to himself as he saw the redness on the human's skin. "Some of us have such a terrible superiority complex," he tutted. He looked up at Hongjoong's face and gave a slight smile. "Is it quite painful?"

"Oh, uh, sort of? When I lift it up it hurts a bit more than it should..." Hongjoong explained. He looked back down at his arm and frowned slightly as he felt the spot throbbing a bit.

Yeosang let out a hum in thought before turning to look at Hongjoong again. "Just wait here, I'll be right back," he smiled. Thankfully this time Yeosang left using the actual door and it wasn't long before he was back in the bathroom with Hongjoong, a small box in his possession. He took out a round container as well as a bandage and hummed a random tune to himself as he began generously applying an ointment to his arm and even wrapped it up with a bandage. "It should be better within a few days. Mr. Park said that you can leave even though you're only halfway through your shift."

"But, I can still- " Hongjoong stopped when he saw the look in the demon's eyes.

"As much as we appreciate your hard work, we'd rather have you recover for at least tonight. You'll be compensated directly for what happened tonight, so don't fret about your pay being less this week," Yeosang reassured, or much rather stated with obvious finality.

And the next day when Hongjoong woke up, he was honestly grateful that they had done such a thing to let him recover, since he could barely lift his arm at all. As he managed to make some food for himself, he couldn't get the image of those grey eyes, that blond hair and the side profile of that man out of his head. Even as he ate, he thought about how mysterious he seemed, yet so very powerful. It was hard for him, a human, to be able to feel that sort of energy radiating off a regular demon, and yet, he had felt it from him.

It only seemed to hit him after he had cleaned up that that had been the owner. Hongjoong swore under his breath and flopped onto the couch as he grumbled to himself, a nagging voice in the back of his head telling him that he really should have thanked the man rather than just stand there like an idiot.

"Surely you know the rules about entering one of Mr. Park's clubs, right?"

The slightly taller demon stood his ground, not commenting on the question asked by the shorter man in front of him. How the other had entered his home was beyond him.

The shorter man twirled a dagger between his fingers and grinned in an all too innocent way as he ran his fingers through his mostly black hair. "If you wanna keep coming to the clubs," he said before suddenly appearing right in front of the taller demon's face, "You better behave," he said, puncturing the wall behind the taller one with the dagger before leaving with a wave of his hand.

Mingi entered the apartment with a groan, tired from a full day's worth of classes and just _university_. He hadn't expected to see Hongjoong still in the living room though. "Hyung? I thought you'd be getting ready for work by now?" he asked. He frowned when he only received a funny high pitched hum in response. "What are you even looking at?" he asked, noticing the older was staring at his laptop on his lap. Mingi came around to have a look for himself and looked at the screen before his own jaw dropped open when he saw the number on the screen. "Hyung... WHAT THE FUCK?! Please tell me you didn't go fuck someone for this money!" he exclaimed.

"What the fuck?? NO! Why would I ever do that?! I-I..." he let out a sigh and took a moment to gather his thoughts. "I got hurt by a customer yesterday.. and the owner of the club decided to send me compensation since I had to leave halfway through my shift... But I didn't think it'd be THIS much!!" he exclaimed.

They both took a moment to calm down and then Mingi placed a hand on Hongjoong's shoulder. "Well, hyung, it's a lot of money... I'll trust whatever you decide to do with it."

That ended up with Hongjoong turning up for work that evening a lot earlier than usual. So early in fact, that the club wasn't even open yet for business for the night. He was dressed in his uniform and he had taken a painkiller just in case so his work wouldn't be hindered. He didn't even know if he would see the owner of the club that evening. He rarely seemed to show up in person.

He busied himself by cleaning the tables and organising the chairs and by some stroke of luck, around half an hour before the club opened, Mr. Park walked in. Hongjoong dropped whatever he had been doing and speed walked on over to the man who was wearing a really great trench coat which was just looked amazing-

"Mr. Park, may I speak with you for a moment?" he asked as he approached the taller man.

The demon turned around and looked at Hongjoong, staring at him and silently giving him a once over. "You're back at work rather soon."

Hongjoong was trying his best not to freeze up in front of this man, but it was so hard being under that stoic gaze. "Uh yes, I took some painkillers- But what I wanted to speak with you about is that comp- "

"Keep it. I'm not taking it back," he interrupted.

"B-but, that's way too many zeroes..." Hongjoong barely whispered.

Mr. Park just gave Hongjoong an indecipherable look and raised an eyebrow. "I would hope that this sort of thing doesn't happen to you again. So long as it stays that way, you shouldn't be too worried about there being too many zeroes, hm?" And the man turned back to where he was headed - which was his office located upstairs - leaving Hongjoong just standing there like a goldfish, his mouth opening and closing without a sound passing his lips.


	2. Chapter 2

Mingi rushed over to his class and was so glad when he saw Wooyoung standing there by the door. He hadn't known the purple-haired boy for too long, but he had become a great classmate and friend to him this semester. "Hey, I didn't make you wait too long, did I?" he asked.

"Nah, but let's get inside and grab our seats," Wooyoung grinned, patting Mingi on the back.

They headed into the lecture hall and grabbed seats towards the back as they had done several times before. Mingi wasn't exactly a shy person, but he wasn't the most sociable person either, so meeting Wooyoung had been one of the best things that could have happened to him. The only downside was that they both had relatively short attention spans, and being seated together didn't help. Mingi sagged down in his seat and glanced over at Wooyoung, only to see that the shorter boy was texting furiously with one hand under the desk. With a slight shrug toward himself, he decided to turn back to face the front and actually pay attention to the lecture since Wooyoung was clearly busy.

Mingi had barely looked at what the other was texting, knowing that it was rude to pry. But perhaps if he had decided to look for a few moments longer, he would have been prepared for what was to come.

The university that Mingi attended was one near the heart of the city, and one which catered to both humans and demons. He could have gone to a school which was only for humans, but he knew that they taught in extremely close-minded ways at those institutes.

The university did have different areas allocated to humans and demons for more physical activity though, and when it came around to exam time, they had special blockers set up around the school to prevent any demons from cheating using their abilities. They had weaker blockers set up throughout the year as well, to prevent any serious property damage or injury to other more vulnerable students.

Just as the two were getting ready to leave their lecture, Wooyoung shot up out of his seat first and turned to Mingi. "I have to go do something. It's urgent. I'll text you later okay?" he said and grabbed his bag and ran out of the lecture hall.

The taller sat there, confused but also not minding it since Wooyoung had his own life to live. They weren't close enough to know too many personal details about one another anyway. Mingi grabbed his own bag and left the room once it was over and sighed softly as he headed over to the computer labs. He hummed to himself only to freeze as he heard a loud boom.

That was definitely on campus.

He finally moved his feet and looked around and could see plumes of smoke coming from the human's gymnasium. He grabbed his phone from his pocket and immediately called Wooyoung, needing to know that he was at least safe.

"_Hey, you've reached Wooyoung. Please leave a message-_ "

Mingi didn't know what made him do it, but even as there were students running away from the gymnasium, he began running towards it. He knew that Wooyoung came to the gymnasium a lot and the last thing Mingi wanted to find was Wooyoung caught in among a less than desirable situation. He burst through the doors of the gym and looked around, though that was pretty difficult considering the increasing amount of smoke.

"Mingi!! What the fuck are you doing here?!"

The said male definitely knew that voice. Wooyoung. And no sooner than his thought of the other did the shorter boy appear before him, coming out from the smoke. Except, now, he was wearing all black, had a hood and mask on and was weilding a red and black sword. "W-Wooyoung?"

"Get out of here you idiot! And you never saw me here, alright?!" he said and shoved Mingi out of the building, but when Mingi turned around, he was outside of the campus.

What on earth had just happened??

Wooyoung nearly let out a growl as he rushed back in and found the demon. He could only hold the thing off for so much longer.

"I'm here!"

"Better late than never Jongho!!" Wooyoung exclaimed as he went over to the other. "They're brave enough to attack the school apparently. Have you called in backup?" he asked.

The other met Wooyoung half way, coughing slightly as he waved away some smoke from his face. "Yeah, reinforcements are coming for capture and repairs. I've alerted the school to close for the day," he said. A sudden rumble interrupted them and Jongho let out a sigh, "Let me knock him out first," he said. He pulled up his sleeves and ran forward, jumping several feet up into the air and successfully striking down on the demon with a single punch. The demon was definitely a lesser demon, so it was all muscles and height, but it didn't exactly have the brains. Easily subdued by Jongho.

The two of them sat on top of the now unconscious demon as they waited for reinforcements. They both looked up as they heard a tutting from someone and saw Yeosang and San walking up to them.

"My my, what a big one this one was," Yeosang commented and shook his head slightly. "Well done you two. Head back and clean yourselves up, and remember to report back to Seonghwa," he said. He turned to San then and smiled, "I'll trust that you'll take care of this?" he said, gesturing to the unconscious demon.

"Of course~ I'll get it out immediately so you can work on the building repairs," San bowed playfully before jumping over to the demon. A large glowing pentagram appeared beneath them and with a little kick, San and the other demon disappeared into the floor.

Yeosang looked around and sighed, knowing it would take a day or two to get everything back in working order, but he supposed that that was easier to deal with than an angry Seonghwa.

"Mingi-yah, there's some food in the fridge okay? Just heat- Mingi?" Hongjoong stopped pulling on his jacket as he saw how dazed Mingi seemed to be as he came back into their apartment. "Mingi? Are you okay?" he asked.

The said boy looked at Hongjoong and nodded very slowly. "I-I just.."

_"Get out of here you idiot! And you never saw me here, alright?!"_

Mingi shook his head and licked his lips slightly, "There was an emergency at school... but I should be fine. They said we shouldn't go back until the day after tomorrow just to be safe," he nodded.

Honjoong frowned at this but sighed, trusting Mingi to be alright. "Well, anyway, there's food in the fridge for when you get hungry. I gotta head to work, but text me if anything is up, alright?" he said before heading out.

The younger boy went over and flopped onto the couch, still sort of confused by what had happened. He took out his phone though and shot Wooyoung a text.

\- Hey, hope you're safe -

After letting things sink in, he went to have a shower and take a nap. "What is going on.." he mumbled to himself.

At one point in time, Wooyoung had felt anxious walking down the spotless hallways of the headquarters. It had been a different time in his life back then, but now, he walked down with confidence. Wooyoung glanced down at his phone when he felt a notification go off, but shoved it into his pocket in the meantime since he and Jongho were headed over to see Seonghwa. With a few knocks on the door, the two of them were let in, the door opening on it's own. He turned to Jongho for a moment before they both entered the office.

"Seonghwa, the demon was dealt with. The only damage caused was to the human gymnasium," Wooyoung explained.

"I heard. What of that boy, Wooyoung? The one who ran in to find you?" Seonghwa asked, though he was seated at his desk, his focus upon the two screen monitors in front of him.

Wooyoung blinked a few times, "Oh, uh, I used one of the teleportation stones to send him out of the direct vicinity of the demon. I believe he's back home and safe now," he explained.

Seonghwa gave an appreciative hum and glanced at the time, getting up then. "Good work you two. Make sure to check yourselves for any injuries, though I doubt it since you're both good at what you do." He grabbed his coat and walked around the two humans and headed out the door. "Do remember to reply to that text, Wooyoung," he said before disappearing in a puff of dark grey smoke.

The two of them stood there for a while, looking back at where the smoke was disappearing and sighed, "He's such a workaholic," Jongho grumbled.

\- Hey Mingi, dw, I'm fine. Get some rest and please, don't tell anyone that you saw me there today... I'll see you next week in classes! -

Mingi sighed as he woke up from his nap to that text, shrugging to himself and getting up to eat some food before diving into some studying.

Ever since Hongjoong had arrived at work that evening, something felt a little off about the atmosphere - as though there was some tension. He shook his head though and went about work as usual. It was a quieter night and so he didn't have too much to worry about, though he did feel a little bored since the only employees there at the time were the manager, another demon server and another human server. The manager was barely there, looking busier than he did normally, and Mr. Park rarely ever showed up on the quieter nights. Then again, he owned a lot of different establishments, so he probably had better things to worry about than a club.

He couldn't help but think about how stunning the owner was. Sure, demons had a way of making themselves look a lot more appealing to a human, but that still required a high level of skill and power. Hongjoong was clearly in over his head with his little crush over the owner, especially since Mr. Park was the leader of one of the most powerful demon gangs in Korea. Despite his rather stoic demeanour, Hongjoong knew enough about Park Seonghwa to know that the demon, despite being very powerful, did not endorse human slavery, unless of course the human in question "deserved it".

The sudden sound of a glass shattering against the floor woke him up and he saw that there was an angered patron stand up from one of the tables. The man was shouting in a language Hongjoong didn't understand, but recognised it to be one of the few demon dialects spoken by those in Korea. He slowly stood up straighter, watching on as the demon took a couple more bottles and glasses, smashing them on the ground as well.

The music stopped playing in the club and everyone else went silent as two more demons stood up and began arguing with the first one.

Hongjoong was getting quite anxious from the situation unfolding before him, and he honestly didn't know what to do. Apparently watching the argument so directly hadn't been the right choice. His feet wouldn't listen to him as one them approached him, and easily grabbed him by his already bruised arm. He bit back a yelp as the demon continued gripping onto him. He couldn't even say anything as he was easily lifted up by his arm, his shoulder aching from the awkward angle. "P-please, let go.." he managed to say.

He didn't know whether they had actually heard him, but he was dropped onto the floor. His face was scrunched up in pain as he lay there.

"That's enough."

Everything seemed to stop in the club then, even the arguing demons.

"You three are banned from this club. Someone, clean this mess up."

He recognised the voice to be Yeosang and Hongjoong lifted his head slightly but found that everything just felt too heavy. He swore that he heard Yeosang say something in his ear, but he honestly couldn't hear it properly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I unintentionally make Jongho seem like one punch man? Maybe xD  
Oops haha  
Hope you're all enjoying this so far~ and please drop your comments down below~ :D


	3. Chapter 3

If it had been anyone else, surely they would have been nervous. Standing there in front of Park Seonghwa and explaining what had happened in the club that night wasn't the easiest thing. But Yeosang had known Seonghwa long enough, and it didn't even make him flinch or tremble as he told Seonghwa about what had happened to Hongjoong. "I've brought him to my room for the time being. I had to patch him up a bit. And I'm sure Wooyoung would appreciate it if I didn't scare his friend by bringing back an injured Hongjoong home in the middle of the night," Yeosang added.

Seonghwa had returned to his office already by the time the incident at the club had occurred and he honestly had been annoyed with the incident over at the university already. This just added to what seemed like a terrible day. "Right. If his injuries are quite severe, be sure to use other methods to heal him quicker. Have him off work for at least a week regardless," he instructed.

"I knew you'd say that," Yeosang chuckled.

Seonghwa turned to look over at his friend properly and quirked a brow up slightly, "Then why bother to come and tell me if you knew my response already?"

Yeosang shrugged a bit, "Just thought the boss should know," he smiled.

The older demon had a feeling that there was a lot more to it than just that, but he didn't want to know at that moment. Yeosang had always been a little too... observant about things. "If there's nothing else to report, then I'll be off."

"Of course," Yeosang bowed playfully before he left the other's office with a happy hum.

Seonghwa shook his head slightly as he watched the other leave.

Yeosang sat by his bed, watching over Hongjoong to make sure the human wasn't reacting adversely to the medication he had given him. He called it medication, but it was really more of a potion that he injected into the human's arm. It was honestly no wonder that he had fainted after such a confrontation considering that demon from the club had torn through the human's clothes and left some nasty wounds on the back of Hongjoong's arm.

He perked up a bit when he saw the human open his eyes and hummed. "Hello Hongjoong. Can you hear me?" he asked softly.

It took several moments before there was any response, which turned out to be a yawn and a groan. "I can barely feel my arm," he grumbled.

The demon chuckled softly and nodded, "That's quite alright. I gave you something to help with the pain, so all you have to do is rest," Yeosang explained. "Mr. Park said that you are to take a break from work for at least a week to recover properly. And before you say anything, no, you cannot just jump right back into work in a couple of days time."

Hongjoong was quiet before he let out a sigh in defeat and finally looked around, "Where are we?"

"You're in my room. It was best to bring you somewhere you could rest up," Yeosang answered calmly. "I'll get the boys to bring you some food and water," he said, standing and leaving the room.

Hongjoong felt like shit, as did anyone after waking up from having fallen unconscious. He knew that he wouldn't have ever received this sort of treatment if he had worked in a club owned by some other demons. He might not keep up to date with who owned which clubs, but he had heard plenty of stories about how other clubs treated their employees, particularly the human employees. He shook his head slightly and turned his head from one side to the other before finding that his phone was sitting quite close to him. He turned it on and sighed in relief when he saw that it was only around one in the morning. He hadn't been out for too long thankfully, and that meant that Mingi would still be asleep or at least in bed by now.

Hongjoong didn't usually finish work until around four in the morning anyway. He let go of his phone and let out a yawn once more as he glanced down at his left arm. He pouted to himself when he saw how half of his arm was wrapped up in bandages, but he was grateful all the same that Yeosang took care of him like this. He didn't know of a manager who was as attentive in this sense as the demon. Hongjoong could tell that Yeosang was someone powerful, perhaps around the similar strength as Seonghwa, but he didn't seem to give off that vibe. In a way, the demon manager was oddly approachable.

There was a soft knock and the door to the bedroom opened, a brunette boy walking in with a tray of food and water, with Yeosang following in with him.

"Thank you," Hongjoong said softly, but as he tried to get up using his good arm, the boy handed the tray over to Yeosang before coming around and helping Hongjoong sit up. Hongjoong sat there, feeling rather dazed by just how strong the other seemed to be. He was no sooner sitting up against a bunch of pillows, the try of food and water now on his lap. "You're very strong," he commented, looking over at the boy.

"Thanks," he said and smiled, "Hope you like the food," he gestured.

Hongjoong ate the food, which was some rice and soup. It was very simple, but he knew that he needed something simple for him to actually fill up his stomach. "That was really nice, thanks again."

"You're welcome."

"What's your name by the way? My name is Hongjoong."

"I know, my name's Jongho," he said, holding out a hand for a handshake.

Hongjoong took the other's hand in his and jumped ever so slightly. He couldn't help but look at the other's hand and blinked several times before mouthing 'oh' to himself. He looked up at the other and tilted his head, "You've made a pact?"

The other nodded with a smile, "Yep," he said, and showed Hongjoong both of his palms which had faint orange pentagrams on them. They glowed ever so slightly every few seconds and it was quite fascinating to look at them. "It's with him," Jongho added and gestured beside him to Yeosang.

Hongjoong looked between the two of them and opened his mouth, "Oh, so are you two like, uh.."

The demon laughed and shook his head, "No no, there are those out there who make pacts and contracts with those they wish to be more intimate with, but our relationship is not like that at all. Our one is quite platonic and it's a genuine exchange more so than anything else," Yeosang explained. He exchanged looks with Jongho and they both smiled.

It was clear to Hongjoong that the two of them must have had some kind of unique experience together for it to end up with them creating a pact. "I see," he nodded. He didn't have much to say since it wasn't something that he was completely familiar with, though he could see that what with the majority of society viewed these sorts of relationships as, most people probably hadn't witnessed anything like Jongho and Yeosang's relationship.

"Alright then. Let's get you dressed, Hongjoong, and then we'll take you home," Yeosang said.

Right. If this was Yeosang's room, then he was most likely in the gang's headquarters, where Seonghwa and the others would be. Hongjoong silently nagged himself, wondering why he was thinking about the other demon even in a situation like this.

Mingi sighed as he grabbed an apple from the kitchen when he woke up. He saw that Hongjoong's room door was shut, so he knew that he should be a bit quiet. It felt a bit odd to be at home when he'd normally have class. He knew he had a few things to complete during this time, but getting back into bed was so tempting.

He nearly jumped when he heard Hongjoong's door open though.

"Hyung? Why are you up so- What happened to your arm?!" he exclaimed, jumping out of his seat as he saw the very obviously wrapped up arm.

Hongjoong had lifted his free hand to his chest, quite shocked and surprised by the other's yelling. "I'll explain... just, sit back down," he said. He sat beside the younger boy and began retelling the events of the previous night.

"- so the gymnasium is completely rebuilt. Just last fixes- "

"Yeosang, did he get home safely?" Seonghwa asked, his focus on a book that he had opened upon his lap as he sat at his desk.

It took a moment for the said demon to initiate who Seonghwa was talking about, but then he remembered what had happened in the club. "Oh yes, of course." He saw the older demon nod slightly and continued to update the other about the university campus seeing as Seonghwa had nothing else to say about Hongjoong.

"Wooyoungie~!"

The human boy sighed softly as he heard a rather familiar voice call for him from the other end of the hallway. He stopped in his tracks and turned around to greet the demon. "Hi San," he sighed once more.

"Aw, why are you greeting me like that?" the demon pouted before shaking his head, "Anyway~ I had a question!"

For some reason Wooyoung felt like he knew what, or rather who this was going to be about. "No," he said, shaking his head and turning right back around and continuing along his way to his room.

"But Wooyoung!" San exclaimed.

The said boy just shook his head. San was a great fighter, excellent assassin and a powerful demon, but he really needed to try and do other more 'normal' things on his own.

"Good job everyone."

The surrounding men all bowed to the taller demon.

"Clean up and then we'll get ready to leave." He took out his phone and called a very familiar number. It picked up after two rings and he smiled, "Hey Hwa, we're still on for Monday, yes?"

"_Yes, of course._"

"Wonderful, I'll see you then."

"_Mm, it's been a while. Wish you an uneventful trip over here_."

"Thank you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for mistakes, I wrote most of this before sleeping xD  
Would love to see your guesses for what could happen next, or perhaps who the other couples are going to be?  
If you have an idea for what could happen in this story, lemme know in a comment too! (I might just incorporate it into the plot somehow ;D)


	4. Chapter 4

Having no work for a whole week after having worked pretty much every week for the last several years definitely felt weird to Hongjoong. It was nice though for the first couple of days, when he and Mingi were able to spend some extra time bonding with one another for the first time in what seemed like months.

After those first couple of days though, Hongjoong had to be a bit stricter and make sure Mingi was doing what he had to for his classes. Apart from that, he had a lot of time on his hands, and even after going on a grocery run - of course, taking his time and whatnot so he wouldn't strain his injured arm - he felt like he had a lot of time to kill. Instead of lazing around at home though, he decided to actually go out and have some fun for a change. He was limited to doing things that were less strenuous, but he didn't mind since he could really use the time to relax after what had happened over the last few weeks.

He dressed in some comfortable clothes - sneakers, jeans and a hoodie - and headed out just before lunch time. He wanted to walk around a bit, maybe do some window shopping, or maybe even buy something for himself. The weather was rather nice that day too, so he'd probably avoid going inside an actual shopping centre.

By the time he reached the main shopping district, he was sort of glad that it was a weekday. There were less people since most were at work, and it was still bright out so he didn't have to constantly keep an eye out for any possible danger. After all, just because he was in the heart of the city didn't mean that there were any less people or things that posed as a threat to a human like him.

Hongjoong was eyeing a rather pretty beret in the window of a shop and he thought about what he could wear with the electric blue coloured hat. As he stood there thinking to himself, he didn't notice a rather tall man walking by. So it wasn't surprising when he let a soft yelp slip past his lips when he felt someone bump into him. He felt a similar shudder run through his body as the first time he had been around a certain demon.

But when he turned around, there was an even taller man in a casual suit standing there, lifting up his sunglasses. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry. I'll try to be more careful," the man said, bowing his head a bit in apology to Hongjoong before he continued on his way down the footpath.

That had definitely been a demon. Hongjoong shrugged and turned back to head inside the store, feeling like that had been a sign of some sort to stop his staring and actually go in and try it on.

Seonghwa sat upstairs on the second floor of a nice little cafe he knew of. He owned the land it was on, but the person managing and running the place did perfectly fine on their own. He had only requested that the cafe have a private floor for him to use for meetings, and the manager had agreed rather quickly.

The demon sat there by the tinted window and sipped on his drink calmly as he waited for his friend. He turned around when he sensed his arrival and smiled to the slightly taller demon. "Yunho," he greeted. The said demon grinned as he took off his sunglasses and went over to give Seonghwa a hug. Most people knew Seonghwa to be quite distant and cold, and they wouldn't think that such a powerful demon would do things like hugging, but with those he was close to, Seonghwa was quite the hugger. "It's been a while. Were you able to get things sorted?" he asked.

"Of course. You know me, I wouldn't leave a place until the business is complete," the taller demon said before taking a seat opposite Seonghwa.

As they sat down, Seonghwa tilted his head slightly as he looked over at the other. "Did you bump into that human boy on your way here?" he asked.

Yunho sat there blinking a few times at the question, wracking his brain for what the other was talking about before his face lit up with realisation. "Oh yes, I did accidentally bump into this shorter human on my way here. Do you know him?" he asked back.

At the question, Seonghwa looked away for a moment and sat back in his seat. "In a way, I suppose. I can't say that I _don't_ know him," he hummed.

The taller demon crossed one leg over the other and waited for Seonghwa to speak.

"He's a new worker at a club I own. Was at the receiving end of a couple of... scuffles with some lowly demon patrons, and I know Sangie has grown to like him already," he explained.

"Wow, Sangie likes him already? He doesn't do that often with humans," Yunho chuckled and looked up when he saw a waiter coming up the stairs. He thanked him for bringing up his order and turned back to the other demon. "What's his name?"

"Kim Hongjoong."

Yunho nodded a bit and hummed, "Interesting name," he commented, noticing a certain look in Seonghwa's eyes that he hadn't seen in a very long time. "He seemed to be window shopping or other when I bumped into him earlier. I think he was eyeing a beret," he shrugged.

Seonghwa took another sip of his drink before turning back to Yunho. "Anyway, how have you been?" he asked.

Later that evening when Hongjoong got back home, a new beret in a small plastic bag in hand, he couldn't help but hop onto his laptop and actually look up who the most prominent demons were in Seoul. He searched through the names before finally landing on a familiar face.

_Jeong Yunho_.

So he was indeed a very powerful demon. He didn't seem like a bad person though, considering he apologised for bumping into Hongjoong earlier. As he looked into the demon's information some more, he saw a little fact which was quite interesting.

_Mr. Jeong is a very powerful demon, one who owns land in both city and rural areas. He is also known to be close friends with another powerful demon, Park Seonghwa._

Well, if that was true, then Hongjoong supposed that maybe Yunho wasn't all too bad after all. He closed his laptop and went to wash up for the day, wanting to at least clean himself before having dinner. It was a bit tricky with his arm still be bandaged up, but it wasn't impossible. By the time he came back out of the bathroom though, Mingi had come back home for the day.

They ordered in some food, both of them feeling quite lazy to actually cook something, and they chilled as they watched a movie together.

Mingi looked over to the older boy when the credits began to roll and bit back a laugh when he saw that Hongjoong was already asleep. He got up and gently scooped up his friend in his arms and took him to his bedroom. He tucked him in and left the room, shutting the door quietly. His hyung needed the rest.

Things returned to normal after that week. Hongjoong returned to work each night, and Mingi continued with his classes, and when Wooyoung still joined him, he didn't mention anything about _that_ day. Wooyoung seemed to relax after a couple of weeks of Mingi not saying anything about that incident.

Mingi did keep up with the news a bit more than he normally did. The last thing he wanted to find out was that there had been another attack somewhere and Wooyoung... No, he didn't want to think about such a thing happening to his friend. Even though he clearly remembered how well equipped the shorter boy had been.

Hongjoong was in a better mood once his arm had fully healed, leaving scars that were only barely noticeable. He was still careful for another week though, trying not to overwork his arm, and obviously his coworkers and Yeosang helped him where they could.

And just like that, perhaps another month passed by without any major incidences.

At least, nothing that seemed odd to the humans.

Seonghwa frowned as he scanned over the files handed to him. Another missing person found unconscious.

"Whoever the culprit is, it isn't just one person. I've had people look into it and none of the scents seem to match up completely. But there is a clear pattern," Yeosang explained.

"Male college students, though it doesn't seem to matter whether they're demons or humans," Seonghwa hummed. He looked up at his friend and quirked a brow, "Is that why you sent Wooyoung to university?"

Yeosang nodded, "He knows how to socialise and get information, and he fits right in anyway. I've made sure Jongho isn't too far from him," he explained. He knew that Seonghwa worried more than he let on about the humans in his gang, so it was a risky move, but it was necessary in this situation.

"We're lucky that they aren't turning up as dead bodies. Make sure San and his men keep a look out throughout the city for any strange behaviour," he instructed before standing up and disappearing in a puff of dark grey smoke.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this~  
Hopefully there will be more direct seongjoong interactions to come in the near future~  
Should I add "slowburn" to the tags? xD


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little warning about some non-graphic violence :)

Mingi had been keeping up with the news, so much so that he had been hearing and reading about these missing persons reappearing after having been reported missing for weeks or even months. He couldn't help but feel that it was so strange that male college students were the targets. After all, what good were stressed out and horny twenty-something year old guys who were either partying or studying too much?

In Mingi's opinion, he felt that it was some kind of ridiculous cult who was behind all of these disappearances.

\- Hey Woo, I know you are probs better prepared than me, but stay safe okay? -

Of course, Mingi never expected a very quick response from the purple-haired boy. He was always busy for whatever reason. 

Hongjoong was pacing around the staff room at the club. He had just arrived at work, but something was bugging him. He had texted Mingi to buy something on his way back home from the library, and usually he responded within a matter of minutes. It was long past that and the message hadn't even been opened by the younger boy.

Work was the last thing on his mind and so he grabbed his phone and ran outside as he tried calling the other. He cursed to himself when he heard it immediately go to voicemail and continued to make his way home, needing to know that Mingi was safe.

Yeosang would have stopped Hongjoong, but he was too occupied himself, trying to get a hold of Wooyoung.

Wooyoung was no demon, but after spending years alongside them, he definitely developed an even better intuition than before. When he had received that text earlier in the day from Mingi, he had responded back after a couple hours, but he had a feeling that something was going to happen.

So as soon as he could, he managed to make a quick perimeter run around the campus to check for any oddities. It didn't seem like it initially, but he couldn't trust that feeling as much. He wanted to make sure Mingi was safe after all and it was clear that the taller boy knew about the recent disappearances. It was getting a little late in the afternoon, with the sun already setting when Wooyoung spotted his friend walking out of the library side of the campus. He followed him from a distance and was confused when he made a stop at a shop rather than going straight home. He hid in place outside of the store, waiting for the taller boy to come back out.

The purple-haired boy froze slightly when he felt that same sensation that he felt when there was going to be an attack. He continued to follow Mingi, trying to stay hidden - but that idea flew out the window when he saw a number of people gather around Mingi on the slightly darker street. "MINGI!" Wooyoung exclaimed and ran at full speed at the men trying to grab the taller boy.

The said boy turned to the voice and saw Wooyoung running towards him. Mingi struggled against the five - or was it six? - men who were grabbing and punching at him. He grunted and flailed his arms about to try and shake them off but he lost balance. His momentary loss of composure allowing one of the men to twist his arm back behind him.

Wooyoung immediately attacked the men, knocking a couple of them over easily using his very powerful and swift movements. He could tell that Mingi was in pain and it hurt to see his friend like this. He tried to get to the remaining three men - or rather, demons - who were pulling Mingi away, but he was easily kicked back to the ground, the foot that had met his chest knocking the wind out of him. He grabbed at his chest and tried to breathe normally and stand with much difficulty. "Let him go!" he exclaimed.

"_Mingi!!_"

Hongjoong came to a halt when he heard a very clear shout of Mingi's name. He headed in that direction, not even thinking about running the last couple of blocks back to the apartment. It was obvious that Mingi wasn't there.

He rounded a corner where he could hear some commotion and soon saw an all too familiar figure being dragged away, along with another young boy barely being able to get up off the ground. "Let go of him, you motherfuckers!!" the boy struggling to get up yelled and that was enough for Hongjoong to know that that must have been a friend of Mingi.

He ran over to the three men dragging Mingi away and with a yell he tugged, kicked and pulled at their arms and torsos, unafraid to even just bite their arms through their clothes so they would let Mingi go. "Don't you _dare_ lay another hand on him!!" he practically growled and with a strength that surprised them all, even Hongjoong himself, he managed to pull Mingi out of their grasps. He held the now barely conscious boy in his arms, and tried to get away from the three men, though he didn't get very far before he dropped down to his knees, using his own body to shield Mingi from any more blows.

That was when the air around them stilled completely.

Even the three demons seemed to stop their kicking and punching.

"Creating diversions in other parts of the city as the strongest of your lot go for the actual target. That's not entirely stupid."

They all turned to the one who was speaking and saw none other than Park Seonghwa standing there.

"Not entirely clever either," he added. He stepped forward and Hongjoong wasn't sure what else he was seeing in those bright grey eyes, but one thing was for sure, there was anger. "You really think that you could've outsmarted me for any longer? You left such obvious clues behind," he tutted and snapped his fingers once.

Other men appeared then, most of them dressed in black, but there were three who appeared without any sort of mask covering their face. Hongjoong recognised Yeosang and Jongho, but the third man - or boy? - he wasn't quite familiar with. A few of the men dressed in black tied up the knocked out humans on the ground and the three demons who had been trying to drag Mingi away were now very easily subdued. Jongho came up to them personally, tightening each of their chains and then some just to be sure before handing the end of the chain to the boy with rather interesting hair.

"San, Jongho, you know where to take them all," Seonghwa instructed.

The two said men nodded and bowed before they each grabbed the chains of each bundle of prisoners and they all disappeared. Yeosang was beside Wooyoung, helping the boy stand up properly.

Everything seemed a lot more peaceful now, the air returning to a more normal state.

Seonghwa slowly approached Hongjoong and Mingi and bent down into a squat. "You sure have a way to attract trouble, Kim Hongjoong," he commented, his face expressionless, though there was a sliver of a playful glint in his eyes. "You're both injured. Come back with us so you can get treated."

The powerful demon had only ever showed him kindness up until now, so of course, Hongjoong's answer was an affirmative nod of the head.

"- I've been doing it for myself on the side a lot."

"I see. You're quite clever, perhaps if the situation allows it, you could work with us."

Hongjoong let out a groan and slowly blinked his eyes open.

"Hyung!"

He turned to where he heard the voice and blinked a few more times before he saw that in fact Mingi was sitting there beside him. "Mingi? You're okay..." he sighed in relief.

"Ah! Don't try to move hyung," Mingi said when he saw the older boy trying to push himself up.

"Mm, your back still needs some time to heal."

Hongjoong turned to the other side and saw none other than Seonghwa standing there. "My... back?"

The demon sat down on a chair and crossed one leg over the other, sitting up in such a proper way. "Yes. The adrenaline kicked in during the fight so you didn't feel it at the time, but your back was littered with bruises by the time we arrived here," the demon explained. "I was surprised that you didn't have any broken ribs."

Hongjoong laid his head back onto the pillow and blinked a few times, "Oh, is that why my body feels about ten times heavier than normal?" he asked.

"Most likely, yes. It was a very amazing thing that happened the other night, all of you being in the same vicinity at the right time... almost as though it was fate," Seonghwa chuckled. He looked over to Mingi and smiled a bit, "If Wooyoung hadn't slowed them down from taking Mingi away, we wouldn't have been able to capture them and save you all."

Trying to wrack his memory for this Wooyoung boy, Hongjoong remembered the purple-haired boy who had been yelling. "The loud one with purple hair?"

Seonghwa smirked slightly and Mingi laughed beside him.

"Yes, that's him," Seonghwa confirmed before standing up. "I have to leave for a bit. Yeosang will come and check up on you, and if not him, I believe one of the others will. For your safety, we plan to keep you here for the time being, so focus on getting better," he said and went to leave via the door.

Hongjoong turned to Mingi and he couldn't help but tear up a bit. He was just so relieved to see that Mingi was well and okay. The last thing he wanted was to lose his closest friend. "Mingi-yah, are you okay?" he asked, reaching out to hold onto the other's hand. He held the other's larger hand in his own and relaxed a bit.

"Mhmm, I'm okay. You and Woo protected me from getting any severe injuries or being taken away by those guys," Mingi reassured and gently squeezed Hongjoong's smaller hand in his own. They were both just so relieved to have gotten out of that safely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading~  
And yay for Hwa and Joong interacting directly finally haha


	6. Chapter 6

"Aww~ that's so cute!"

Mingi and Hongjoong both nearly jumped out of their skin from surprise when they heard a voice. They turned to the doorway and saw none other than that rather young looking demon from earlier.

"Ah, apologies! My name is San," the demon bowed in a odd, almost prince-like manner. He walked into the room and then took a seat on the chair that Seonghwa had previously been sitting on.

Hongjoong couldn't help but notice the demon's youthful appearance, his dimples as he smiled making him look rather cute. Though his obviously fit body which stood out even from beneath his clothes told Hongjoong that the other was much more than just a demon with a cute face. His slicked back hair which was black for the most part, was somewhat long, but the white lock near his nape broke up the solid colour. "Nice to meet you, San," Hongjoong smiled, and Mingi followed suit. Hongjoong decided to ignore the fact that the demon's eyes seemed to linger a few seconds longer on Mingi.

The demon turned back to Hongjoong as though nothing had happened and grinned in a rather mischievous manner. "It is so amusing to see you here," he chuckled - or rather giggled.

"Amusing?" Hongjoong echoed, tilting his head in obvious confusion.

"Mhmm. Hwa doesn't usually let humans straight into headquarters more than once," San hummed. "There must be something about you, Kim Hongjoong," he smiled, though it resembled more of a smirk than anything else.

The said human nearly wanted to scoff. The only thing that might have made him stand out was the fact that he had been in the middle of scuffles and fights with demons more times in the last couple months than he had ever had in his entire life. And it all just happened to be connected to Park Seonghwa. "There really isn't," he ended up responding.

San tilted his head before shrugging dismissively. "Alright then, whatever you say. Though the odds are honestly against you about that. Even Sangie likes you and he rarely likes humans. Apart from Jongho and Wooyoung, you're the only other human he seems to have grown rather fond of," he commented and then sighed. "Alas, I must go and check on those bastards who tried to take Mingi. Perhaps teach them another lesson or two." The demon bowed once more before disappearing in a puff of what resembled dark grey mist.

"That's so cool how they do that every time.." Mingi commented absent-mindedly.

Hongjoong turned away from his friend and rolled his eyes.

Soon enough, Yeosang and Wooyoung came in to check on them.

Before anyone else could say anything, Hongjoong spoke up, "Hey, Wooyoung?" he called out and smiled to the boy who looked a lot better than the last time he had seen him. "Thanks a lot, for helping Mingi," he smiled.

The purple-haired boy brightened up a bit at that and blushed a tiny bit. "It's not a problem. He's my friend... and I had a weird feeling earlier in the day... I'm glad that I trusted my gut enough to follow him," he said and smiled to the taller boy who was smiling back.

Yeosang had come around the bed and helped Hongjoong sit up, the latter wincing slightly as he did so. "I really did get beat up pretty bad, huh?" he hissed slightly, taking a deep breath as he sat up.

"Mm, quite so. Once we get some food into you, we'll give you some more pain medication," Yeosang explained as he made sure Hongjoong was comfortable resting against the pillows. "Other than your back, do you feel any other pain?" he asked.

Hongjoong wiggled his toes and moved his fingers around, tested different parts before frowning slightly when his jaw ached a bit. "My jaw? Just a bit... must have been from biting those guys," he mumbled the last part, but it was loud enough to pull a laugh from Wooyoung and a smirk from Yeosang. "Remind me not to just go bite a demon's arm like that again," he grumbled.

It was taking some time for his back to heal from all of the bruising. Hongjoong hated being still for so long, being dependent on others for the most trivial things.

Once about a week passed and he could at least walk around without a pinch or a tug from his back, he was allowed to wander about the building a bit, though not into rooms that were clearly private or he was not authorised to enter. It was such a big space and seeing everything properly for the first time made Hongjoong realise that the head quarters was located in some sort of warped space where it wasn't quite in the human realm or demon realm. The views outside of the giant windows were so clearly of Seoul, but the air inside the building, how big and maze-like the corridors were - there was clearly some powerful forces at play keeping the place hidden from the general public.

It was nice to see that Mingi wasn't completely attached to Hongjoong all day everyday during their stay there at the demon's head quarters. He seemed to be spending plenty of time with Wooyoung and occasionally, Hongjoong spotted San with them too. Hongjoong found himself spending most of his time in the bedroom or in the corridors, either alone listening to music, or with whoever else was there to just chat to. This turned out to be mostly Jongho or Yeosang. Though even then, most of the demons seemed to be busy taking care of other business, so it was mainly the humans who interacted with Hongjoong.

Mingi's injuries had been a little more superficial than Hongjoong's injuries, so the younger male seemed to recover sooner, his arms, torso and legs looking a lot less bruised long before Hongjoong's back was even a yellow-green colour. It wasn't as bad as the purple splotches that had been littering his back for what seemed like forever though.

Hongjoong rarely saw Seonghwa again. Perhaps he had seen the blond demon in passing a couple of times around the head quarters, but otherwise, their interactions had been close to none since that day a little over a week ago. It wasn't as though the demon had promised that he would drop by to check on them or anything. For all Hongjoong knew, Seonghwa might just be to considerate and polite to let them go home injured. Maybe they were just a nuisance at this point - at least Hongjoong, considering he had been injured more than once and the one who had ultimately had to be responsible for him was Seonghwa.

The next time the humans saw Seonghwa, it was in the demon's office - which was ridiculously big and only confirmed Hongjoong's thoughts about the place being in some sort of warped space. "I must say, something about your energy seems to attract demons, Hongjoong, and I do not mean in the good way. For the price that you're paying at your current apartment, I'm offering a place that is closer to both the club and the university for you both to move into. It is safer and overall has better facilities than your current living arrangements."

Hongjoong and Mingi exchanged looks before they turned back to the demon sat at his desk. "That's really kind of you, Seonghwa... but are you sure? We... You don't have to do so much for us. We're grateful for everything that you have already done for us anyway," Hongjoong said. He caught his bottom lip between his teeth, an old habit of his which resurfaced when he felt nervous.

"I wouldn't be offering such a thing without proper reason. Us demons live for a very long time... and it has been a long time since any of us here have felt a sort of connection to so many humans in a very long time. You'll both be mostly healed by the end of the week, I'll let the offer stew until then," Seonghwa nodded.

They ended up accepting the offer. Hongjoong knew that he was going to do his best not to get involved in too many more incidences - not that he had been _trying_ to get involved in the first place. He didn't want to seem like he needed to be taken care of so much. One of the main reasons why they had accepted the offer was because it was exam time soon for Mingi, and he needed more of his own space, his own room where he could study and be comfortable.

Wooyoung dropped by often to both check in on them as well as study with Mingi. Hongjoong was grateful for that since it was clear that the two of them had grown quite close as friends. So when he left for his usual night shifts again, he didn't feel so worried or anxious about leaving Mingi alone. He didn't doubt that the new apartment was safe, he trusted Seonghwa too much now to doubt such a thing, but having seen Mingi nearly become to victim to whatever strange abductions that had been occurring around the city-

The elder of the two couldn't help but to worry.

Another thing that they both clearly appreciated at the new apartment was definitely the air conditioner, especially with summer break approaching.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
As you may have noticed, my chapters vary in length xD  
Anywaysss, please leave your comments down below~ ^^ I would love to read and respond to your thoughts!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The outfits mentioned in this chapter are the black ones from the crescent online party :3

Despite the disturbances in their lives, Mingi had been able to get through his final exams and assignments just fine. His relief came and went within a day and he slept for a good couple of days to make up for any lost sleep from the last couple of weeks, and Hongjoong just did his part in making sure Mingi had food to eat. He had even taken up Mingi’s load of chores half of the time just so the younger male could focus on his studies.

Hongjoong was happy to find out that Mingi had done better than just passing his classes and decided to treat the younger male to his favourite food and drinks, making sure to invite Wooyoung along too. And for whatever reason, that meant that Jongho and San decided to tag along as well.

The more the merrier, he supposed. Anyway, it was also a little celebration since summer break was beginning too.

It was barely even a week into summer break when Hongjoong received an email from Seonghwa. He had never received an email directly from the demon and he didn’t even question how the other had it - the demon was his employer after all.

_ Dear Hongjoong, _

_ There is an annual ball being held by some of the larger companies around Korea in a couple of weeks. We’re allowed to bring a plus one. _

_ Please let me know if you’d be free to attend. _

_ Oh, and also ask Mingi if he wishes to attend as well. It seems that San wishes to bring him along if he is available. _

_ Regards, _

_ PSH _

That was definitely an interesting email. He supposed the demon was probably on his computer more often than his phone, or at least, that’s what he assumed since Seonghwa was either in his office at their headquarters or in an office at one of his buildings in Korea.

It was a day off for Hongjoong so he decided that he could take his time to think and reply to the email. Though, when he asked Mingi about attending, the younger male seemed rather eager to attend. If for no other reason than wanting to make sure Mingi would be safe - though he trusted that Seonghwa and the others would look after the boy - Hongjoong decided that he too would attend.

_ To Mr. Park, _

_ Thank you for considering us to be plus ones for this event. I’ve asked Mingi and he seems rather eager to attend, so it is a yes from us both. _

_ Though, if there is a dress code that we must abide by, I’m not sure if Mingi or I have the appropriate attire for the event. You mentioned that it is a ball, so it will be a formal occasion, correct? _

_ K _ _ ind regards, _

_ Hongjoong _

Hongjoong actually preferred this slightly more formal exchange between the two of them. Texting with his boss seemed just a bit odd. Not necessarily inappropriate, given that their whole world was so different in terms of what was morally and ethically right and wrong, but Hongjoong knew where lines were drawn. Seonghwa clearly did not have, or at least show, any interest in anything close to dating or romance.

Even after all this time with demons overtaking so many parts of the world, there was still such little known about them and their way of living. They definitely took their hierarchy seriously though, and at times Hongjoong honestly couldn’t decide whether it was a good or bad thing.

As though the demon had been waiting for his response, a reply arrived almost immediately.

_ Dear Hongjoong, _

_ No need to address me like that, this isn’t about work, and you needn’t thank me, but I am glad to hear that you will both attend the event with us. _

_ It is a formal event, but the attire is not as strict as some formal events run by humans. We already have the attire for our group set. We will send over someone to drop off your and Mingi’s outfits within the week. _

_ And as you may not have attended these sort of events before, every group or company designs their outfits to a certain colour and theme. Makes it easier to distinguish who is related to who since there are usually a few hundred attendees. _

_ I will attach the file with the event’s information. Please let me know if you have any concerns for the event. _

_ Regards, _

_ PSH _

Hongjoong spent some time looking over the file and nodded to himself. It seemed like a pretty standard business or charity event - with the majority of attendees being demons rather than humans. He had never attended such an event, held by either species, so it was going to be a first for him, and Mingi too.

  
  


The  _ someone _ who was sent over to drop off their outfits for the upcoming event turned out to be Wooyoung and San. The former seemed rather irked by San’s presence, but Hongjoong knew that their relationship with one another ran far deeper than what he knew it to be. Perhaps he may be told about it one day, but considering that they weren’t causing any trouble, he didn’t concern himself with it.

As they tried on their outfits, Wooyoung and San waited patiently in the living area, wanting to see for themselves how they’d look.

Hongjoong stood in front of his mirror and couldn’t help but admire how well everything fit him. “You sure the event isn’t a party?” he asked half-jokingly, seeing as most of his own outfit consisted of leather. He came out of his room though, almost at the same time as Mingi. The two of them stared at each other before the elder spoke, “Wow, I don’t think I’ve seen you in a suit since your high school prom, Mingi,” he chuckled.

They both walked back out to the living area and flinched when they heard two high pitched squeals.

“Oh my god! Seonghwa is going to go crazy!” Wooyoung yelled.

“W-what do you mean, Wooyoung?” Hongjoong asked, trying not to seem affected by those words as much as he actually was.

“Both of you look stunning! I’m sure some people will question whether you’re actually even human,” San laughed.

“All of our outfits have some kind of silver harness or piece by the way. For us humans it sort of works as a charm, deterring unwanted demons if they get too close to us, and for the demons in our group, it’s just an accessory,” Wooyoung explained, pointing out the silver pieces that were a part of each of their outfits.

Hongjoong couldn’t lie, this outfit was not that far out of his comfort zone, but it was still so much more than what he would put on himself. And when he turned to Mingi, he had to admit that the younger male definitely looked great in his all-black suit, accented with a x-shaped silver chain harness under his blazer.

  
  


On the evening of the actual ball, Yeosang had come over to pick them both up from their apartment. He looked wonderful in his own black suit and silver accessories.

“Do you all get this dressed up for this event every year?” Hongjoong couldn’t help but ask as they got into the car.

“Yes. Seonghwa may not seem like the type, but he likes to flaunt his status at least at this event. It’s like a reminder to other people who holds a lot of the power around here,” Yeosang chuckled from the driver’s seat. “One of us picks a colour and then we run with that,” he shrugged.

Hongjoong had yet to become more acquainted with his manager, but Yeosang seemed a lot more chipper that night. He hoped that it was because of a good reason and not something that would test Hongjoong’s moral compass. Though he supposed that with everything that had been happening around them, his moral compass was probably a little askew in some people’s eyes.

The drive to the venue wasn’t terribly long, and if it hadn’t been for the obvious nerves and excitement radiating off of Mingi beside him, Hongjoong might have fallen asleep.

The venue looked like a harmless town hall, but Hongjoong had been spending enough time around Seonghwa and other more powerful demons to know that there was some very powerful magic at play. Yeosang drove up the curved driveway before stepping out, gesturing for the two in the back to do the same. The demon handed the keys over to one of the parking valets, not even saying a word. Hongjoong knew that it would not be a great idea to talk to anyone unless they were absolutely certain they were decent people, so they silently followed Yeosang inside, and in the lobby area, they found the others standing together.

The first thing that Hongjoong noticed was how great everyone looked, all decked out in various degrees of matte black clothes to pieces and garments of leather, similar yet different to what Hongjoong was wearing. They all indeed wore some piece of silver, whether it resembled a harness, or an over the shoulder belt, or an extremely sparkly piece which looked like an extravagant necklace. They all wore some makeup, some more than others, but they looked great with or without it anyway.

The second thing Hongjoong noticed was that Seonghwa… he had dyed his hair to black - and it did things to his heart and mind that he really hoped no one else noticed.

And the last thing that Hongjoong took note of, was that there was a rather familiar face standing with the others.

“Jeong Yunho,” he blurted out as soon as they reached the rest of the group.

The said demon looked up and saw Hongjoong, “Ah, Kim Hongjoong,” he smiled, “Nice to finally meet you properly,” the taller man said, holding out a hand to the human.

Hongjoong shook the other’s hand, despite his eyes betraying him as he glanced over to Seonghwa for a moment. He remembered that the two demons were friends, so perhaps his name had been brought up in some brief conversation? Surely he didn’t hold enough significance to really be a topic of conversation between such powerful demons. He let go of the other’s hand after a few firm shakes. He turned to see if Mingi was alright, but ended up smiling, seeing his younger friend flanked on either side by San and Wooyoung, Jongho standing quietly beside the latter.

He saw Yeosang suddenly walk past him and was a little surprised to see his manager actually smiling properly as he looked up at Yunho. Seeing how their arms were linked and they seemed to suddenly be in their own little world, it didn’t take Hongjoong long to realise what their relationship was.

“They’ve been together longer than you’ve been alive,” Seonghwa said, stepping up beside Hongjoong.

“They look happy together,” Hongjoong hummed softly. There was a part of his heart which both longed for such a thing for himself, and another part which simply felt envious.

There weren’t too many more words exchanged between them before they were all being ushered into the main hall where the event was actually taking place.

And Hongjoong had been right about the magic. The glamour in this place must have been strong, because as soon as they entered the hall, the inside seemed a lot bigger than what you’d expect. There were tables for every group of demons, yet there was also a decently sized dance floor - though, he was pretty sure it’d be used for mingling rather than actual dancing.

They had been told that it would be mainly finger food, so they had eaten beforehand - at least the humans had eaten beforehand. But Hongjoong hadn’t been surprised since the event started well past dinner time.

Surprisingly enough, there were a few speeches presented before the actual mingling happened. San seemed rather determined to keep Mingi by his side the whole night, and Hongjoong would have been a little more concerned if it hadn’t been for Wooyoung and Jongho also tagging along.

Seonghwa had given him a look across the table after the speeches had finished, and though Hongjoong still couldn’t quite get a read on the demon’s emotions, he knew that the other wanted him to follow. It wasn’t terribly boring, more amusing than anything else since he could really see who wanted to either get in Seonghwa’s pants, or really wanted to get into the demon’s good books - the demon was unsurprisingly popular.

Hongjoong didn’t need to know much about Seonghwa to know that Seonghwa had no plans in actually entertaining any of those peoples’ hopes.

“I’m pleased to see that someone is amused by this,” Seonghwa commented at some point when he wasn’t being attacked by someone’s fluttering lashes or someone waxing poetic about his supposed achievements.

Hongjoong hummed and nodded, “It’s not your suffering that is amusing though, I can assure you of that. It’s more to do with how far some of these people go to try and gain even a second of your attention,” he chuckled. There was definitely the lingering thought as to why  _ he _ of all people managed to gain Seonghwa’s attention, but that was shoved back into the same corner of his brain where he had shoved the possible notion of Seonghwa being interested in him a tiny bit.

“Mm, I suppose it is amusing the first few times,” Seonghwa hummed. “They need to realise that they don’t need to try so hard,” he added. “Though, I suppose if none of them tried as hard as they did, I wouldn’t have had the time to meet you.”

Why did the demon have to say such things at the most unpredictable moments?

They were all a bit distracted within the next few moments though as Mingi and the others came over to them. “Hyung! I’m gonna work this summer,” Mingi grinned.

“Eh? Were you looking for a summer job?” Hongjoong asked, a little confused by the other’s sudden declaration.

“Not really, otherwise I would have told you,” Mingi laughed. “But it’s nothing too crazy, and I’ll be safe. I’ll be working for these guys,” he gestured, nodding his head in the direction of both Seonghwa and Yunho.

Hongjoong wasn’t sure whether he should have been worried or relieved by such a prospect. “Oh, okay. Thanks for letting me know,” he smiled. Really, there wasn’t anything stopping Mingi from working a summer job, he was an adult and his own person after all. Though exactly what Mingi could do for demons like Seonghwa and Yunho, Hongjoong honestly was a little clueless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo is it obvious who the other couples are or gonna be? xD  
I think it's more obvious now, right? haha~  
And yes, I've realised seongjoong in this fic are slow hahahah  
Comments and kudos are appreciated~!!


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